Wichita eagle., 1887-12-03
THE BRITISH FLEET.
LITTLE TO ENCOURAGE FAITH IN
MONSTER ARMORCLAD SHIPS.

MONSTER ARMORCLAD SHIPS.
Several Collisions and Many Breakdowns
During the Recent Maneuvers-A Very
Sloveniy Performance-VesseIs Running
Short of CoaI-TorpeCio Boats.
The recent maneuvers OF the British fleet
did little to encourage those who pin their
faith to monster ships and heavy arInor. In
deed, even the unbelievers in this type were
scarcely prepared for the sorry spectacle pre-
sented by the mighJiest fleet afoat, for in the
Irish channel, where Admiral Baird essayed
to defend the shore line against the assault OF
Fitzrov, and again in the English channel
and North sea, when Hewitt sought to pierce
the line of Freemantle, the big ships proved
at best both awkward and uncertain.
There We're several collisions and many
breaEdowns; in all dozen ships out OF two
score Were disabled by their own exertions,
or gave out from lack of coal during the fort
night of evolution. The great ships Ajax
and Devastation crashed into each other
early in the day, and it was only by quick
work, and what must be regarded as good
luck, that the latter did not go down. As
it was, she was badly listed over on to her
side, with her guards under; something heavy
i'll the way of machinery having been sent
adrift below. The Ajax was disabled and
lay like a dead whale in everybody's way,
and q constant nsenace to all The new steel
cruiser Curfew, from which SO much was ex-
pected, was SO awkward to handle and SO
slovenly in minding her helm that. when the
report came she had broken down, and
powerful tugs were sent by Admiral Hewitt
to tow her into port, a sigh of relief must
have gone up among the feet, for from the
descriptions given Of her movements, she
seems to have been as deadly as an iceberg
quite as dangerous TO friend as enemy, and
required whole ocean to herself. Then there
was the Colossus, of which so much has been
written-the floating fortress, carrying
enough power to cripple f1eetl Unless she
can do better than her recent performance
promises, no feet need fear her, for, in order
to sustain injury, it would have to come up
and considerably lie to, possessing itself in
patience while the really formidable battery
was trained; for it is said to have taken an
hour and thirty minutes to work the Colossus
into psitio and load, train and fire the after
guns on the port side. After firing one round,
the big ship fell back disabled, and lay help
less in the tideway.
The Terror might not inappropriately be
renamed the False Alarm aud the Impe-
rieGse, the Impotent; for the former on two
occasions Numbered down upon the enemy,
and, when at point blank range, was unable
to train her battery Till she had passed the
target, having then to run over a circle of
miles diameter to get around again into posi-
ton, while the Imperieuse fell out of line be-
cause running short of coal-blcsS the mark
And when again her bunkers were full, she
was so slovenly il a cross sea Is to be well
nigh unmanageable.
When we remember that the rate of speed
at which the ships were working was only
seven knots an hour, and that, notwithstand-
ing they were within easy reach Of a great
coaling station, several Of them ran short Of
coal while maneuvering, we cannot help Won
dering what would happen such feet fight
ing in mid ocean! II may safely be said that
if the result of the fortnights maneuveIs is a
fair exponent of what feet Of monster ships
are capable Of, we need have little fear Of
attack by such vessels on this side of the
water. Few of these large ships would carTy
anything like enough coal 10 bring her
across, and those 50 capable would be COM
PEELED to coal at some station here before
ready for aggression, or, barring that sup
ply, be unable to get home again. Hence
blockade or capture of the coaling stations
would render such a fleet harmless.
1t ought 90 be said of the officers in com
mand of this great feet that they are as ca
pable lot of men and as able seamen rs can
be picked up on the ocean. Experienced, too,
they are in all manner OF novel machinery
and war material, used TO working modern
ships, and, quite. as important, familiar with
the waters they sail in It was no fault of
theirs that some of the monsters they COM
manded carried weather helms with wheels
hard over. or, rs was the case with another,
parted the shaft while trying to work head
up to wind with engines Of s, 600 horse power.
in attempts to form line of battle whether
in tbs form of column, crescent or wedge,
were fairly unsvaihng from a naval stand
point, because the time occupied was SO pro-
longed as to give quick witSd enemy o.
portunity TO anticipate the maneuvers and
evade the shock The big ships on several
occasions rammed one another while getting
into line, and brealldowns and demands for
assistance marked the most important ma
neuvers This was no fault OF the command
eis, but of the ships being built TO carry
great batteries and bear ponderogs almor
rather than for seaworthiness and rapid
movement.
The work of the torpedo and torpedo boat,
from which so much is-not unreasonably-
expected III future naval wars, seems TO have /
been pIuposely underestimate at the maneu-
verS this year, as it was III the French ma
neuvers last year, for fear of shaking the /
sailors faith in the impregnabihty of the
ships he sails in.-Scientitic American.